2015 Heath Award Winner: Steve Redding Sr.

Heath Consultants  is pleased to announce that Steve Redding Sr., director of Pacific Gas and Electric’s (PG&E) leak management program, was named as the recipient of the 2015 Milton W. Heath Sr. Memorial Award at the American Gas Association’s annual Operations Conference and Biennial Exhibition in Grapevine, Texas.  This award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions toward the detection, prevention and repair of natural gas leaks.

Redding was given the award for his achievements in reducing leaks through the use of cutting-edge technologies and the development of a management process unique to PG&E that is streamlining the company’s ability to respond to leaks. Redding and his team have delivered unprecedented results in the reduction of PG&E’s backlog of minor, non-hazardous leaks by 99 percent and the ability to find 80 percent more leaks than previous models, and in less time. Redding’s work to reduce leaks on the natural gas system not only improves the safety of the pipeline for PG&E customers and communities, it also contributes to a cleaner environment by reducing methane emissions.

Since beginning his career at PG&E in gas metering, Redding has held a number of leadership positions from overseeing major pipeline construction to serving as a general rate case witness. In his current role as director of leak management, Redding and his team work to increase system safety by finding and fixing leaks and identifying more effective leak detection technology.  Redding has a Business Management degree from St. Mary’s College in California.

Click here to see our previous award winners.

2014 Heath Award Winner: Larry Papst, Southern California Gas Company

Larry Papst received the AGA 2014 Milton W. Heath Sr. Memorial Award. The award, sponsored by Heath Consultants Incorporated, is given annually to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to leak detection prevention for repair during the preceding five years. Larry received the award for his work on gas leak detection tools for enhancing the safety, reliability and efficiency of distribution and transmission pipeline systems.
Larry has held a number of field and management positions within the Distribution and Customer Services organizations during his 24 year career with the Southern California Gas Company. He is currently the Field Technologies Team Leader whose client base consists of SCG & SDGE Field Operations Departments.
Larry has leveraged his experience and knowledge of gas operations to make strides in improving public & employee safety while effectively addressing organizational needs. The successes realized were developed through partnerships between his business partners, distributors and manufacturer’s to address issues on multiple fronts.
An area of priority that Larry and his team are proactive in is soliciting feedback regarding existing processes, performance and deficiencies as it relates to leakage investigation and mitigation equipment. He actively identifies solutions through research and builds relationships with vendors and manufacturer’s to advance processes and technologies that support existing and future industry requirements pertaining to safety, performance and reliability. His team effectively supports field personnel by providing supplemental training to promote tool familiarization, proper operation of equipment, and revisions to corresponding company policies.
Larry has successfully positioned his organization to maintain pace with the natural gas industry by proactively identifying and addressing the needs of his business partners. He strives to enhance the end-user experience incorporating the development and integration of new technologies in conjunction with processes that strengthen employee safety, knowledge and performance.